casting bullets

[devster55]

hey guys ive been looking into casting my own 30-30 bullets and .357 bullets. how hard is it too do?

[EL_NinO619]

Not hard at all, now acquiring free lead is another story.

[gunboat]

Not hard at all --
You need fire, pot, mould and lead to cast -
Lead is becoming a little more difficult to get in calif as lead wheel weights are no longer legal -- I had the good fortune to just score on some linotype at a very reasonable price. Mixed with a bit of softer lead it makes for great bullets, especially small caliber.
You need one of several methods of sizing bullet to proper diameter and lubing them -
For 30/30 there are quite a few different weight moulds to choose from and several manufactures.
I suggest a copy of lymans cast bullet handbook, any edition, for good info on casting.
You might also check out cast boolit website/forums

[koehn,jim]

Its very easy as long as you follow proper safety methods. lee precision makes some very good moderate price stuff. There are several good blogs Cast Boolits being one of the best, that will cover most questions. It is an easy ecconomical way to insure a supply of bullets, I cast for everything I shoot except .224 just too small to deal with.

[bruce381]

go over the "cast boolits site' thats all they do read the sicky things and you will learn all you need to

[koehn,jim]

If you are going to cast consider multiple cavity molds, I prefer the lee 6 cavity over the two cavity. For rifle I use 4-5 cavity, I like to shoot a lot. You wont really save money casting you will just get to shoot a lot more for the same money. Start reading the stickies at cast boolits and ask questions before spending money.

[LeadSlinger585]

Tagged

[eeeeman]

Yes that's right

go over the "cast boolits site' thats all they do read the sicky things and you will learn all you need to

Bruce is right

[devster55]

Thanks guys

[CGT80]

It's not bad. I just do it to make some cheap plinking ammo. Making an accurate cast load can be more work. I shot some of these 159 LRN plan base boolits lubed with White Label Lube Carnuaba Red, this afternoon. At 30+ yards I got a 3" group on paper, resting from the bench.........not too great. I also haven't tried shooting the same conditions with J words yet. I was hitting a 5" circle consistently at 20 yards while standing and I also hit a 2x3 inch piece of steel at 20 yards with no problem. At $4.80 for 100 rounds of loaded ammo, I can't complain. This bullet was loaded over 6.0 grains of Red Dot and gives me 1116 fps from a 1974 Winchester 94 rifle.

[gunboat]

Nice looking boolit --
You might try lyman 311291 170gr gas check.
It works well in the 308, 30/06, and 30/40 as well --
My mould proved only fair when used as cast in the 7.7jap --

[CGT80]

I have a Lyman 311413 that is a 169 spire/spitzer point gas check. I have not tried it yet. I just got into casting for my rifles. I also shoot 30-06, so I plan to give it a try. I will also try the RN PB boolit in my 30-06 to compare it to the results of the 30-30.

I do have some gas checks, but they are pretty pricey. If I stick with gas checks, I may get one of those tools to make my own.

Thanks for the compliment and ideas.

For the OP, I have cast 38 spl. bullets (same thing) that were plain base round nose. They look much like the 30-30 bullet I showed. They are just as easy.

I also cast 45 cal boolits. The MP molds are awesome and very easy to use. They must be heated on a hot plate to work well. Castboolits forum has group buys and more info. I am on that forum with the same handle as here. I have run these from 600-1400 fps. I only ran a few at the top end so far.

[devster55]

Would there be any way I could buy a few off of a member to try them out? Thanks.

[welldriller]

`38 molds

Someone on Craigslist in Los Angeles has 38 wadcutter molds for sale today. They are hard to find used.

[devster55]

I mean just the bullets to see how they shoot.